What's eating my andorra compact juniper?

Andorra Compact Juniper faces its greatest threat from juniper scale and bagworms, both of which cause progressive foliage browning and dieback. Its dense, low mounding habit traps humidity and can favor twig blight. Spider mites flare in hot dry summers. Deer and rabbits browse the low stems in winter.

White-gray encrustations on needles and bark; foliage yellows, then turns brown from the inside of the canopy outward. Dormant horticultural oil in late winter; insecticidal soap targeting crawlers in early summer. Prune and destroy heavily infested wood.

Silk bags covered in foliage pieces; caterpillars consume needles within, leaving bare dead branches by late summer. Hand-remove bags before egg hatch (winter–spring). Spray Bt or spinosad on newly hatched larvae in late spring.

Shoot tips and new growth turn brown and die in spring; infection spreads inward under cool wet conditions. Prune infected tips well below the discolored tissue. Improve air circulation; apply copper-based fungicide at bud break if conditions are wet.

Stippled, dusty-gray or bronze needles; fine webbing on inner foliage in summer heat. Water stress increases mite outbreaks — keep plants irrigated. Apply insecticidal soap or neem oil; repeat every 5–7 days.